Apologies are Sometimes Necessary
by ImmerKlein
Summary: Usopp gets up the courage to say the words which are sometimes the most difficult to say. Set after the events of Movie 6.


This is set right after Movie 6 (the awesomest movie of them all). I decided it, so there. Oda "The Man" owns One Piece, and I'm so glad he does.

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The last light was fading from the sky, leaving the ocean in that strange state of transition where the sea was bathed in flowing oranges and yellows like some vast expanse of gold. It was the ocean that created pirates, and when pirates had no gold of their own, they could look out at the sunset sea and find some satisfaction in that.

Usually.

Usopp sat on the deck of Going Merry, frowning as he tinkered with something he couldn't care to remember the function of. He ignored the unsettling feeling in his stomach as they sailed away from that freaky place, the place where they had almost all died and been eaten by some creepy flower. The whole thing had been like some twisted ghost story, straight out of nightmares. Vacation, hah!

The sniper muttered to himself as he worked with the thing, a steady stream of commentary on the whole blasted island and the entire cursed incident, and why on earth did couldn't they have just left the second the Baron said "test from hell" anyways? Usopp clearly remembered telling them all several times that it was a trap, and hey, look at that, it was! But no, they had to go and get _eaten_, that was always fun. Geez, did they always have to pick the really scary places to visit?

Not to even mention the giant freaking goldfish that had arrived like something out of the stories he had told Kaya back home, and the race with Nami and the rings...

Ah. Nami.

Usopp sighed, scratching the side of his head. It wasn't his fault that stupid "rescue box" was some crazy contraption that had latched itself onto him and sent him flying way up above the island. Nami yelling at him for abandoning her, and then he had to go and say she did the same thing all the time.

Ouch.

Well, she did run away sometimes, but she would never abandon anyone. Usopp felt the need to bang his head against something. No wonder she had been acting so mad towards him.

But the Great Captain Usopp couldn't just apologize, because it was just an accident. He didn't really mean it, anyways. She should have known that. Except... at the time, caught up in the moment, with all the stupidity of the games and the Baron's tricks, he kinda did mean it. He really hated himself for saying it now, though. Stupid, that's what it was, and all during a dumb game.

Shoving the contraption back in his bag, Usopp stood up and made his way towards Nami's room, mumbling to himself as he went. If he was going to apologize, he might as well do it quick. She was his nakama, after all, and that means something.

When the sniper found the door, he hesitated for a moment, rubbing his famous nose as he thought over his words before he entered. With a shrug, he knocked.

"Come in," Nami called, and Usopp pushed the door open.

Nami was alone, which was good, seeing as Usopp didn't really want to have to apologize in front of more than one person at a time. He had his manly pride, after all. She looked up as he entered, and made a small face Usopp couldn't read. He grimaced internally, guessing that he probably deserved it anyways.

"Oi, Nami," he said, rubbing the back of his head nervously. "You busy?"

She frowned. "No, not right now. I'm just correcting some of the errors on the map we had of the island. Turns out the landmarks on it were way off, which is how we got so lost. I swear, it's like Zoro drew this thing."

Usopp laughed. "Yeah, I guess. Um," he broke off at the look on her face, which was that same impatient face she wore whenever she wanted someone to just _go away_ but was going to wait before she told them to.

"Yes?" she asked, her voice raising slightly at his hesitation.

"It's about back on the island, when we were playing Toss the Hoop," Usopp began, unable to just _say it_ and get it over with. "I said something pretty mean."

"Yes, you did," Nami replied, her eyes narrowing slightly.

Usopp picked at the edge of his wristband, not wanting to meet her eyes. "I wanted to... apologize." There.

Nami raised an eyebrow.

Damn it, did she have to make this hard or something? Why were women always wanting to draw things out?

"I'm sorry for saying that, cause it's not true," Usopp said, still staring down at the ground. "I didn't want you to still be angry at me for all that. I was being stupid."

"Eh, everyone was," Nami said, and Usopp looked up in surprise. Nami tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, smiling slightly. "You didn't abandon me on purpose, after all."

Usopp scoffed loudly, folding his arms across his chest and thumbing his nose. "Who puts a self-attaching hang glider in a rescue box, anyways?"

"Who puts in two hand-made cups?"

They looked at each other for a long minute, and then laughed.

Sometimes, apologies are necessary.

--

Yes, Usopp actually apologized for something. You know him and his manly pride (cough, cough). Aaaand... reviews are nicest. Cookies are being held hostage for those who review.


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